"He that hath a trade hath an estate; and he that hath a calling hath a place of profit and honor" - Benjamin Franklin

Saturday, May 21, 2016

Fuel Cans

I bought an extra gas can a couple of years ago. I go through quite a bit of gas in the mower in the spring, plus it never hurts to have a little extra on hand for the generator if the power goes out. The only problem was the super safety nozzle on the can. It was spring loaded and there was no vent up high. Just a pain in the ass to try and use. I came across a replacement nozzle kit at Sportsman's Guide, so I took a chance and bought one. The nozzle itself screws right on and it comes with an extension so it could be twice as long if need be. You have to drill a hole for the vent but you end up with a gas can just like the good old days, prior to meddlesome intervention by lawyers and the government. The kit also came with another nut which fit my kerosene jug.

The only thing I use kerosene for is the heater in the shop I used prior to buying the gas one. It was just about impossible to fill the heater with the can because it too had one of the spring loaded nozzles on it. I figured I could do a little better than that, so I rigged up a set-up similar to a 2-1/2 gallon can I had. The aluminum bits were cut-offs from other jobs, the hose was left over from plumbing the oil tank on the Sportster and the hose barb was out of the coffee can of hose fittings. No trip to the hardware store required and no additional cost. I still need to rig up a vent but that shouldn't be too tricky.

I actually did a little bit of work on the VW after finishing up the gas and kerosene cans - did a little welding on the body. I had started a patch when I had it at the high school but just got it tacked in. I should have made the patch a little larger but I didn't find that out until I started welding it in and discovered it was really thin on one one side of it. It's welded up now, though. I'm also welding up the holes for the trim on the sides. Going for the "Cal Look", sort of. I don't know how much more I'll do on the VW for now but I'm moving forward and having some fun.